Chasing Illuminated Staircase

The RSAMD's production of Flight included a curving, illuminated staircase. Each step had a frosted perspective panel in the riser which would illuminate and each step was individually controllable from the lighting desk.

The Requirements

The Design

The set for Flight was an airport lounge, comprising an open waiting area flanked by curving walls. Above the waiting area was a catwalk platform, supposedly leading to the aircraft. A staircase following the curve of the stage left wall led between the stage level waiting area and the catwalk. Each step on the staircase had a frosted perspective panel in the riser which was to illuminate. The lighting for each step had to be individually controllable to allow for chases and other effects to be created.

Design and Resource Limitations

The lighting design for the production was substantial and as such consumed all available dimmer channels. The production budget would not allow for the cost of hiring additional dimmers, therefore solution to the staircase had to be found that did not rely on dimmers. Additionally, at the end of the performance, all the set pieces moved off stage except the staircase. This meant that any cabling required would have to be able to be disconnected and removed or hidden before the scene change to leave the staircase standing alone onstage.